


I'll Show You Mine

by ericsonclan



Series: OG World [54]
Category: The Walking Dead (Telltale Video Game)
Genre: Cleaning, F/F, F/M, Gen, Swimming Pools
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-27
Updated: 2020-09-27
Packaged: 2021-03-07 20:34:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,442
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26683753
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ericsonclan/pseuds/ericsonclan
Summary: The Ericson crew takes on the task of cleaning the old swimming pool in order to turn it into a pond.
Relationships: Aasim/Ruby (Walking Dead: Done Running), Allison/Willy (Walking Dead: Done Running), Clementine/Louis (Walking Dead: Done Running), Prisha/Violet (Walking Dead: Done Running)
Series: OG World [54]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1815361
Kudos: 8





	I'll Show You Mine

**Author's Note:**

> (by Laura)

“Attention, everyone,” Prisha said, raising a hand as she approached the picnic tables for supper. “Willy and I have a very important announcement to make,”

The group looked up at the pair with interest, their members spread out across two tables: the two pairs of young parents and their children at one table while the others included the latest two members, Renata and Allison, occupied the second table.

“We found a way to drain the pool!” Willy exclaimed with excitement. “I dove in to pull the plug myself!”

“Willy did indeed ‘pull the plug’, an impressive endeavor considering the pool’s standing water had been in there for over a decade,” Prisha looked up proudly at the boy, reaching out to pull a stray piece of scum from his hair. Now that everyone looked at him, they could see that he was indeed still a bit scummy, though Prisha seemed to have done her best to scrub him off. There was also a rather potent pond water smell coming from Willy’s form.

“Congrats, guys,” Clementine looked up from trying to feed her daughter Maisy a spoonful of mashed vegetables. “So what’s next?”

“Well, the filling of the pool will take quite some time,” Prisha replied, her hand on her chin. “We’ll need to redirect the irrigation systems we’ve put in place to run water into the pool on off-peak hours such as the night. Before that however, the pool must be thoroughly scrubbed out. It’ll be a team effort, one that will at least take a full day if we can spare the manpower,”

Clementine looked to Aasim who nodded thoughtfully as he bounced his son Zachariah on his knee. “We should still send out people to check the traps, tend the garden and of course feed the animals, but we can set aside our other projects for a day,”

“Look at Aasim the master planner allowing for a day of pleasure,” Louis teased.

“Oh, I don’t know if pleasure would be the right word,” Prisha replied. “There are years of muck to scrape and scrub off the pool walls. We need to get all the chlorine and other pool chemicals off the surface of the walls if we have a hope of making this a sustainable pond in the long run,”

“There are some old uniforms in the gym locker rooms,” Ruby offered. “We can all put those on without worrying about mucking ‘em up,”

“Then it’s decided,” Clementine nodded. “Tomorrow once all the morning chores are done, we meet at the gym to begin the cleaning process,”

With that settled, Prisha and Willy joined the second table, Prisha taking a seat beside Violet while Willy plopped down next to Allison.

Renata, who sat on the other side of Allison, wrinkled her nose playfully “Phew, Willy! Even by today’s standards you smell rank!”

Willy shrugged. “Prisha helped get most of it off, but I guess the smell sticks on even after you wash,”

“We’ll all be smelling like that tomorrow,” Violet muttured, taking a bite of her stew.

“You excited for it, Allie?” Renata asked elbowing her friend in the ribs. “Which of us do you think will smell worse?”

“You,” Allison replied, not looking up from her food.

“Wow,” Renata fake pouted. “Maybe I’ll have to throw some scum your way to even the odds,”

“If you do that, I’ll stick some down your pants,” Allison replied evenly.

“Sheesh, guess I’d better steer clear then,” Renata turned to her food, soon commenting on its deliciousness to Omar like she did every night.

Willy looked over at A.J. who sat at the other table trying to help Clementine and Louis get Maisy to eat her mashed veggies before glancing back at Allison. She didn’t seem to mind the smell. Maybe tomorrow would be a good time to get to know her a bit better.  
He’d been trying to get on her good side the past few weeks she and Renata had been here, but he still wasn’t quite sure what Allison’s good side looked like. Sometimes she seemed interested in what he had to say, but most days she was all business, focused on the work they’d been assigned and nothing else. Maybe he could plan something cool with A.J. that would get Allison to join in the fun. He hoped tomorrow went well.

\---

They were all up bright and early the next day, eager to take on this new project. It was a simple matter doing the daily chores they knew by heart. Soon they were all gathered around the pool, looking inside its slimy depths, some with trepidation and others with excitement.

“Alright, everyone,” Prisha directed, looking round the circle. “We’ve gathered all the mops, shovels, brooms, buckets and rags we could. Let’s get off as much grime as we can so this pool can have a fresh start,”

One by one they descended the pool ladders and handed down equipment to begin the process. Willy and A.J. were the first ones down, scurrying across the base of the pool in their bare feet and slipping across the scum. “C’mon, Allie! It’s fun!” Willy called.

Allison glared at the use of the familiar nickname but didn’t shut him down as she usually did. Leaping down to the base of the pool without using the ladder, she joined the teenager and ten-year-old, her expression flat.

“Race you to the other side!” Willy declared, touching the mucky side of the pool before sprinting to the other side. A.J. and Allison joined him, their bare feet slapping against the floor of the pool until they stopped dead in their tracks at the sight of Ruby, hands on her hips and baby Zachariah strapped to her back.

“As much as you three may like the muck and grime, this ain’t playtime! This is a job like any other! We’re clearing out this pool so that we can have a sustainable fishpond year-round. So grab a mop and get to work!”

“Yes, ma’am,” the boys murmured, hurrying to pick up cleaning equipment. Allison followed suit, joining Renata in scrubbing down the eastern wall of the pool. Prisha and Violet were at work further down the wall. Aasim and Ruby had begun on the floor together. Omar had volunteered to take first watch outside.

Louis gave Clementine a steadying hand as she took the final leap off the ladder and into the pool. She smiled at her husband, giving him an appreciative kiss before looking toward her daughter who cooed from her sling across Louis’ chest. “She’s certainly a talker, isn’t she?”

“Gets that from her dad,” Louis declared proudly. He looked rather funny in the undersized basketball jersey, one clearly made for prepubescent boys rather than a grown man. He had teased Clementine mercilessly when she was given a uniform that fit her just fine.

Clementine rolled her eyes good naturedly. She grabbed a broom that leaned against the pool wall. “I sweep, you scoop?”

“As my lady commands,” Louis gave a dramatic bow, waving the dustpan he already held.

Cleaning the pool was as dirty a job as they’d expected. Piles of plant waste and mud littered the floor, the heavy smell of chlorine and rot rising from them. They’d have to clear it all out only to bring in new mud and plant matter according to Prisha and Aasim. Something about building up healthy bacteria before the fish were introduced.

There were also heavy pieces of rubble scattered across the base of the pool. These had fallen in years ago when a particularly heavy storm had blown over a tree, sending it crashing upon the roof and breaking a large portion of the ceiling. Turns out the destruction had a silver lining though, the massive hole in the ceiling providing the room with the sunlight the pond and its fish would need to grow.

After handing over Maisy to Clementine, Louis joined Aasim in lifting the rubble. Prisha and Violet set aside scrubbing the walls to assist in the process from outside the pool, the two of them using a ratty old blanket as a sort of sling to lift out the rubble the men placed within. Starting with the largest pieces, they moved as a coordinated team, systematically clearing the pool.

Meanwhile, Renata had enlisted the help of the children to make clearing the piles of plant waste into a sort of game. Holding a bucket, she ran back and forth among them, catching their lobbed projectiles with glee. The more shots they got into the bucket, the more points they got. If the muck missed the bucket, they’d simply pick it up later and try again. The competition was fierce, all three kids being fairly even in their marksmanship abilities. Ruby and Aasim looked on in disapproval, but as the game seemed to motivate the kids to work all the harder and Renata was careful to steer clear of the other adults in her scampering, they let it slide.

It was about two hours of hard labor before the rubble and most of the muck had been cleared out. At that point, what was left to do was to wipe down the rest of the pool and do a preliminary rinse before the final fill. Buckets were filled with water and everyone grabbed a rag, joining in the scrubbing together.

Willy slid over by Allison, scrubbing the wall vigorously. The mud-slinging game had been fun, but they’d all been too busy grasping and flinging trash for any sort of conversation to be had. Stretching as far up as he could, Willy tried to get the girl’s attention for even a moment. She didn’t seem interested in conversation though, merely joining him in stretching up her rag as far as she could reach, several inches below his reach. Willy looked down with a grin, ready to brag about how tall he was.

That was when he noticed them. The basketball jersey Allison had been given was somewhat small on her, ending an inch or two above the gym shorts. When she stretched up that ill fit was only exaggerating, exposing several inches of skin. And that skin was absolutely littered in scars. They all looked similar. About two inches in length, each a dull maroon color, the skin leathery and hard.

Allison caught him staring. Her dark eyes met Willy’s, cold, narrowed. “What?”

Willy was at a loss for words. Normally when he saw a scar on somebody he’d gush about how awesome it was and ask them the story behind it. But so many scars and all the same… he had a feeling the story behind them wasn’t something cool at all.

Her eyes followed his down to the scars before turning upward once more. “Punishment,”

“I’m… sorry,”

Allison shrugged. “It’s over now. Knowing what became of the Delta, they’re probably dead,”

“I hope so,” Willy’s tone was firm, his gaze steady.

Something flickered within Allison’s eyes before disappearing. Taking a hand off her rag, she tugged on the hem of her shorts, pulling them lower. There was a jagged scar just above her hip that seemed to run farther round her back. “Got this from a mountain lion,”

Willy’s eyes widened in awe. “No way!”

“Way. It almost got Renata. I stepped in front,”

“That is the most badass thing I’ve heard in years! You’re like the coolest girl ever! Seriously!”

A small smile crossed Allison’s face. “I am,”

“Tell me more about the fight? Please, please, please? Did you kill the mountain lion? Did you eat it?”

Allison nodded. “Renata burnt the meat though. Tasted terrible,”

“I need details!” Willy bounced with excitement before a sharp harrumph from Ruby had him scrubbing the wall frantically, trying to show that he could multitask.

Allison joined in the scrubbing. “My knife was over by the firepit. I rolled that way, keeping out of its reach, then…”

\---

Renata looked over at Allison with a smile. She wasn’t sure what she was talking about with Willy, but she hadn’t seen Allison say that many words to her within the span of a week so whatever it was it must be exciting.

“They seem to be getting along,” Prisha’s words brought Renata’s focus back to the wall in front of them. Resuming her scrubbing, Renata smiled.

“I’m glad to see Allie making friends. I don’t think it’s something she ever got to have, at least, not in the normal way,”

“She seems to be taking to it quite naturally,” Prisha nodded toward the pair who were still talking animatedly.

“I guess it’s human nature to want to make friends. It’s everything I could have hoped for her here: food, walls, and people to care about,”

“She seems to care about you quite deeply,”

Renata shook her head. “A kid needs more than that. One person can never be somebody else’s everything. Allie needed a community. Still can’t believe we found it after all this time,”

“I have to admit, I had my doubts about your… effervescent greeting at Ericson’s gates,” Prisha grunted as she attempted to remove a particularly stubborn bit of slime off the wall, “But you’ve proven yourself to be quite the hard worker. It’s somewhat surreal having new faces around,”

Renata grinned. “Glad we get your stamp of approval,” She looked down at the bucket between them, filled to the brim with putrid green water. 

“Think I’ll dump this out and get us some new water,”

Prisha nodded. “That would be appreciated,”

Picking up the pail, Renata hurried toward the ladder. Tucking the bucket on one arm, she carefully made her way up it, sparing a glance down when she was about halfway up. They’d made good progress so far. A few more hours and they would be finished. Looking over at Allison, Renata considered slipping past her and Willy to overhear what they were discussing but figured it was better not to interrupt. She didn’t want to risk   
Allison clamming up when she was in the process of making a real friend her own age. She hadn’t had that in so long. Renata had sometimes wondered if she ever would.

Ascending the rest of the way, Renata headed toward the outside exit, sludgy bucket in tow. This place was real, more real than anything she’d found even back when her parents were alive. This place offered a future when up until this point she and Allison had barely been making it day to day. Perhaps it was too soon to say it, but part of Renata’s heart already whispered the dream: this place could be home.


End file.
